Monday, August 08, 2011

NEW YORK (AP) — Tens of thousands of unionized Verizon Communications Inc.workers from Massachusetts to Washington, D.C., went on strike earlySunday after they failed to agree on a new labor contract with thetelecommunications company.

The Communications Workers of America said negotiations in Philadelphiaand New York stalled Saturday night after Verizon continued to demand morethan 100 concessions from workers and the unions refused to budge.

Mark C. Reed, Verizon's executive vice president of human resources,called the outcome of the unions' actions "regrettable" for customers andemployees.

"We will continue to do our part to reach a new contract that reflectstoday's economic realities in our wireline business and addresses theneeds of all parties," he said in a statement.

The contract that expired midnight Saturday covers 45,000 workers,including 10,000 represented by the International Brotherhood ofElectrical Workers, who serve as telephone and repair technicians,customer service representatives, operators and more.

"Even at the 11th hour, as contracts were set to expire, Verizon continuedto seek to strip away 50 years of collective bargaining gains for middleclass workers and their families," CWA said in a statement Sunday.

Verizon, the nation's largest wireless carrier, has 196,000 workers;135,000 are non-union.

At the center of the contract negotiations, which began June 22, are thecosts of health care, pensions and work rules.

The CWA said the concessions are unjustified and harsh, given that Verizonis highly profitable — the company's revenue rose 2.8 percent to $27.5billion in the second quarter. Its growth was largely attributed to itswireless business.

But Verizon said its wireline business has been in decline for more than adecade, and that it is asking for changes in the contract to strengthenthe unit. The company said union employees contribute nothing to theirhealth care premiums.

Verizon activated a contingency plan to ensure customers experienced"limited disruption in service" for the length of the strike.

"Tens of thousands of Verizon managers and other personnel have beentrained to step in and perform emergency work assignments," Verizonspokesman Rich Young said.

A customer satisfaction survey released in May showed Verizon Wireless andSprint Nextel Corp. ranked highest among the Big 4 wireless carriers. Thesurvey polled 8,000 households in the first quarter of this year.

Verizon added 1.26 million wireless subscribers under contract in theApril to June period this year, a result that flies in the face of theslowdown in new subscribers across the industry in the last two years. Ayear ago, Verizon added just 665,000 subscribers under contract.